Narrative:On June 29, 2015, a Consolidated PBY-6A Catalina became beached on a sand bar on the shore of Orange Beach, Alabama. The aircraft was being used in the film production of "The U.S.S. Indianapolis: Men of Courage" and had just landed. The aircraft began taking on water and a pump was used to remove the water from the inside of the plane.Initial attempts to free the plane using two tractors failed because a cable snapped. A further attempt on July 4 also failed. During attempts to hoist the Catalina onto a barge the fuselage broke.

This information is not presented as the Flight Safety Foundation or the Aviation Safety Network’s opinion as to the cause of the accident. It is preliminary and is based on the facts as they are known at this time.